Talk on Inner Peace for Outer Dynamism

Sun, 06/30/2013, Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland

The talk, Inner Peace for Outer Dynamism, was held in Switzerland in the month of June. Sri Sri presided over it. This event, which took place at the Crowne Plaza Hotel, Geneva, also featured an evening of music, wisdom, and a meditation, guided by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.

Face-2-face with Sri Sri – Thousands connect online with Sri Sri

Sri Sri took to Facebook with a live event where people asked questions, seeking guidance on issues ranging from love and relationships to maintaining faith in times of calamities, addictions, depression, success, and societal violence.

Live stream analysts reported that 148 countries were logged in to chat for Face-2-Face with Sri Sri.

VIP participants included Monika Griefahn, Former Member of the German Parliament and co-founder of Greenpeace Germany; Ricardo E Harvey, Coordinator of the program of Security, Corraentes, Argentina; Mrs Shirin Ibrihem Fattah Amedi, Secretary-General of Iraq, Kurdish Women's Union; and civil society members from countries like Korea, Turkey, and Iran.

Addressing social uprisings in different parts of the world, Sri Sri called for non-violence to be the the guiding principle for any agitation and movement. “We need to see that the demonstrations are peaceful, because they are against a cause not a person,” he said, responding to a question from Marcelo Freixo, Congressman from Brazil.

To a question from a civil society group in Pakistan on how to eliminate terrorism from Pakistan, he emphasized the need for educating the masses about the oneness of creation. “We are a one-world family. Our first and foremost identity is that we are part of life. The rest of our identities are secondary,” he told.

For most people, Facebook has been a casual medium for fun, but on this day it became a powerful tool for social transformation.

A "walk for water"/Ecology

Sun, 06/09/2013, Bangaloe, Karnataka, India

Under the aegis of Volunteer for a Better India, Sri Sri Ravi Shankar led a walkathon in Bangalore to bring public attention to the water woes of the city, which depends on the Cauvery River and nearby natural sources for its potable water needs.

The 4 Km walk also drew attention to the Kumudavathi river rejuvenation project, initiated by the Art of Living volunteers in rural Bangalore as part of the organization's efforts for environmental protection.

"Hundreds of volunteers from non-government organizations (NGOs) have been dedicating their time every Sunday to work in the catchment area to breathe life into the river. There is a dire need for more citizen participation to restore the river," Sri Sri Ravi Shankar added at the end.

He insisted that illegal sand mining should be stopped and the people should be made aware of it. He also declared that, “Our teams of experts and scientists were able to revive springs in eight surrounding villages during the last two months."

30 inmates serving jail terms were released for a few hours with permission to come and visit Sri Sri Ravi Shankar at The Art of Living International Centre. (Sri Sri’s goal of a stress-free and violence-free society is supported by extensive rehabilitation programs in prisons across the world.)

Graduates of the trauma- and stress-relief programs of The Art of Living, these 30 transformed inmates have been instrumental in spreading the positive vibration and bringing smiles to 2,500 fellow inmates.

Inspiring them to continue the good work, Sri Sri said, “We should work towards building trust and bringing about human values in people.”

Mr. S Ravi, IPS, Deputy Inspector General, State Police, said, “Their transformation is comprehensive. We have seen a lot of difference in the general well-being of prisoners through these (Art of Living) programs. They have became more productive and their all-round personality has changed. Further, they were imparted skill training. Now they will be absorbed in society easily, without any social stigma. The training, which empowered them, set off a chain reaction wherein they began training other inmates.”

I Meditate Africa – Uniting 23 African Countries for Peace, Africa

Thu, 05/23/2013, South Africa

I Meditate Africa brought 23 countries together in the first-of-its-kind online meditation in Africa, conducted by Sri Sri Ravi Shankar.

2013 marks the 50th anniversary celebration of the formation of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) (Find out more: http://summits.au.int/en/21stsummit/50th) Urging people to come together and pray for a conflict-free Central and North Africa, Sri Sri said, “Prosperity is not possible without peace and peace is a far-fetched reality without prosperity. Peace comes from within. Let’s resolve to create a violence-free, stress-free Africa.”

The event witnessed the participation of Ravi Pillay, Member of the Executive Committee & MPL Human Settlements and Public Works, KwaZulu Natal, South Africa, and Dr. Ela Gandhi, granddaughter of Mahatma Gandhi, among many others.

The following day saw even more people arrive from all over South India to wish Sri Sri on his birthday. The first edition of the Sri Sri Awards were given to luminaries who had distinguished themselves in various fields. Sri A. Nagaraju, who received the award for his outstanding contribution to film and theater over decades, gave a moving performance highlighting the glory of the erstwhile Vijayanagara Empire in Karnataka. There were a number of dance performances including Mohiniattam from Kerala and Garbha from Gujarat. Sri Sri lauded the work being done by Art of Living volunteers in distributing over 4000 solar lights in remote villages of India that were still without electricity. He also appreciated the initiative to clean the Kumudvati river in Karnataka, which has already started benefiting 20 villages and over the next few months will lessen the water shortage in Bangalore as well. He then led the gathering into a meditation. The day ended with a final performance by the ashramites that had the crowd on their feet.

Over a thousand village deities gathered from all over Karnataka at the newly built Guru Paduka Vanam at the Art of Living International Campus at Bangalore on 12th May. The oval shaped amphitheater with a water body at the center completely full of decorated deities was an ethereal sight to behold, especially when all thousand of them were offered arati at the same time. The entire atmosphere was festive and full of celebration with sounds of drums, cymbals, conches and ringing bells. Explaining about the significance of the event, Sri Sri said in his address, "Just like we have a Parliament, the subtle beings also have a Parliament. This Parliament of the Gods has assembled here today. An idol becomes a deity when a realized person invokes life in it through mantras. Every village has a deity that is worshipped. Leaving aside all differences of caste and creed, we are all under one Divinity. The purpose of this event is to remind us of this."

Encouraging grassroots culture

Mon, 05/13/2013, Bangaloe, Karnataka, India

In an initiative to celebrate our grassroots culture, 1001 local deities from different parts of Karnataka were brought together at the Art of Living International Center. Entitled “Karnataka Vaibhava Celebrations”, this cultural festival became a platform to celebrate, explore, and showcase the rich splendor of Indian culture, vibrancy of its roots, and wisdom.

It is said that culture is a great mechanism of connecting with society. This festival brought 1008 custodians of ancient culture in a show of oneness. Hundreds of rural people accompanied the idols and walked around the amphitheatre, paying obeisance. In an atmosphere rich with prayers, chants, and bugles, everyone celebrated the spirit of honoring diversity and oneness.

Tour Schedule : May 07 - 16

Thu, 05/16/2013, Bangalore, Karnataka, India

Public Talk

Wed, 05/01/2013, Philippines

Public Talk on 'The Secret to Health & Happiness' at the Asian Institute of Management, Manila, Philippines